PIB upholds Press Council of India's directive for journalists to report responsibly

New Delhi, October 15 (IANS): The Press Information Bureau (PIB) on Thursday upheld the Press Council of India's (PCI) norms for journalistic conduct, urging for responsible reporting amid the alleged spread of misinformation regarding protests seeking the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls controversy.In a post on X, the PIB said: "Responsible journalism begins with distinguishing facts from conjecture, speculation, and opinion.""As outlined in the Press Council of India’s Norms of Journalistic Conduct 2022, journalists must uphold accuracy, exercise editorial responsibility, and ensure that satire and commentary do not cross the line into defamation," it added.The PIB highlighted that the norms of journalistic conduct emphasise the importance of distinguishing facts from conjecture, speculation and opinion to ensure responsible reporting and maintain public trust.It urged journalists to not present conjecture, speculation or opinion as fact and instead clearly distinguish between them."Cartoons and caricatures intended as good-natured humour fall into a separate category and may be treated more liberally," the PIB said while emphasizing on the norms of the Press Council of India.It cautioned that while satire is an accepted form of writing, it must not be used to disguise defamatory statements."Words such as ‘incompetent’ or ‘impotent’ must be judged in the context of political commentary to determine whether they are offensive," the PIB added.Meanwhile, the Press Council of India has consistently advised the Press to adopt restraint and caution in its reporting."An attempt should be made to create an environment in which, through self-regulation, the Press ensures an optimum balance between the exercise of its freedom and its responsibility. That is the basic objective Press Council seeks to promote and enshrine," the Press Council of India stated in a note on its website.As per Section 13 (b) of the Press Council Act, 1978 the Council has been mandated to build a code of conduct for newspapers, news agencies and journalists for achieving high standards of reporting.In pursuance of the same, based on the adjudications and other pronouncements rendered by it, the Council has evolved over the years, principles that are expected to be applied with due discernment and adaptation by journalists to regulate their own conduct in discharge of professional duties, as mentioned by the PCI.Earlier, Delhi Police's Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations unit registered more than four FIRs against social media handles allegedly spreading false narratives and attempting to disturb the national atmosphere.